CHS basketball: best in the west

The WDA (Western Dakota Association) basketball tournament from March 5-8 had Century come out on top for both the boys and girls divisions. The girls, who were the fourth seed, faced the number one seeded Minot High Magicians in the semifinals.

The Magicians, led by four-star junior Alliyah Carlson-Bell, went into the tournament with a record of 21 wins and 1 loss. The Patriots on the other hand, had a record of 13-8.

Century sophomore Olivia Klimpel, who guarded Carlson-Bell most the game, forced Bell to have a slew of turnovers early into the first half, which allowed Century senior Zoie Austin to connect on several shots and create a moderate scoring margin between the two teams.

In the second half, junior guard Abby Fosland showed off her defensive IQ by picking up one block in help-side defense to add to her total of three blocks. Century maintained their lead until the end with a final score of 57-54. They were going against the second seeded Mandan Braves in the regional championship.

Mandan overpowered Century in the first half with their fast, aggressive guard play between senior guards Ziah GreyBull and Sapphire LeBlanc.

The Patriots ended up increasing the defensive ante and gained a total of 13 steals in the contest for a final score of 57-55.

The Century boys swept through the first and second round with ease, taking down Jamestown with a score of 74-36 and then beating Bismarck Legacy 79-62. In the championship, Century faced off against Bismarck High School (BHS) and the electric duo of senior playmaker Andre Austin and freshman sharpshooter Khaliq Austin. Andre Austin, a finalist for WDA Senior Athlete Of The Year and BHS single season assists record holder, had a notable year averaging 18.2 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game and 5.6 assists per game. Little brother Khaliq Austin, who is the number one ranked freshman in North Dakota and an All-WDA player, had a substantial first year averaging the most three pointers off the bench in the state with 74.

BHS has seemed to be the kryptonite for CHS for the last few years. In the 2021-2022 season, Treysen Eaglestaff scored 52 points in a win against number one ranked Century. In the 2023-2024 season, Century lost to BHS 103-61. Recently in the 2024-2025 season, BHS gave CHS their only loss of the season with a score of 84-75.

The game started with fast-paced scoring with Century’s first baskets being three three-pointers, one from junior guard Garrett Nissley and two from sophomore guard Gibson Kinnebrew. Andre Austin kept his team in the game with his crafty finishes and playmaking. Century senior Drew Kempel and aforementioned Nissley kept the ball moving for easy baskets near the rim while junior Joey Kraljic would clean up the missed shots. At the start of the second half, Bismarck and Century began to turn up on offense, with multiple three-pointers from Century junior guard Camden Kraemer which were followed with three-pointers from Demon junior Artie Carlow. With the game tied and with about 8 seconds left on the clock, Kempel drove to the basket and was fouled on the shot, allowing him to have two free throws. 

Kempel took two dribbles on the first shot, and missed it. on the second shot, he took a deep breath, looked at the rim with no fear, and then proceeded to sink it giving Century a one-point lead. Bismarck got a sideline inbounds which they inbounded the ball to Andre Austin with about three seconds left in the contest. Austin dribbled up the floor and shot a half-court heave for the win which looked on target, but came up a little short. 

The stadium was filled with cheers as teammates hugged teammates and Century coach Darin Mattern embraced his former player now BHS head coach Jordan Wilhelm.